Tisbury selectmen approve new town bike route

Although the Tisbury selectmen began a half-hour earlier Tuesday night, any advantage gained by the new 5 pm start-up time was lost over the almost 3-hour meeting.

The Tisbury selectmen voted to designate a town bike route from Five Corners along Lagoon Pond Road and up Skiff Avenue to Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road to help bicyclists avoid riding on State Road where there is heavy traffic, no bike path, and a narrow sidewalk.

Their action took place against the backdrop of a fatal accident on July 6 when Dina Dececca fell from her bicycle into the path of a tractor-trailer truck while riding on State Road near Camp Street.

Several concerned residents who live along that stretch of road attended the meeting and asked the selectmen to take whatever action possible to slow traffic down and increase bicycle and pedestrian safety.

Tisbury’s department of public works (DPW) put up signs for the new route yesterday. DPW director Fred LaPiana said a bike path along Causeway Road behind Veterans Park would replace a portion of the route when constructed this fall.

The selectmen’s vote on the bike route followed a presentation on a potential shared use path network for Tisbury by Martha’s Vineyard Commission senior planner Bill Veno. He also serves on the MVC’s bicycle and pedestrian planning advisory committee.

Mr. LaPiana followed up with a summary of where the multiple bike paths are, along with funding and access issues.

In other business, the selectmen approved a common victualler’s license for Yeebiu Chang, owner of the Golden Dragon Restaurant on Water Street. They also agreed to hold a status hearing in 90 days to discuss the improvements to the building’s exterior with landlord Sam Kim of Chelsea.

At the request of Emergency Services Facility (ESF) building committee chairman Joe Tierney, the selectmen approved $50,995 from a contingency fund to pay for change orders for construction of the ESF on West Spring Street.

On the other side of the ledger, Mr. Tierney told The Times in an email yesterday, the town saved $22,000 on a generator purchase for the new building by bidding it out separately from the construction.

The selectmen’s next regular meeting is at town hall on August 3 at 5 pm. On August 10 they will hold a cable-TV franchise renewal hearing for Comcast at 5:15 pm, followed by a joint meeting with the DPW commissioners.